i have a 2000 mim strat. love the guitar, but i noticed that a friend whose strat is about the same age as mine gets a nicer tone from his usa strat. it got me wondering-are the pickups in both guitars that much different?

i have been thinking about switching out the pups to give me a nicer more mellow jazz smooth noiseless type of sound. i may be asking for the impossible, but any thoughts are welcome

Your situation is a simple one. Your pickups not only have less windings than their American counterparts but they have ceramic magnets unlike the Alnico ones in their American counterparts. You've also stated you are looking for noiseless (aka humbucking ) types. An excellent place to start your search is with DiMarzio's Virtual Vintage/Area series. Check out the Dimarzio website for particulars.

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You dig?

+1 on the DiMarzio's.

For a real mellow vibe, I'd consider an Area 67 at the neck, an Area 61 for the middle, and (for a bit of "bite") an Area 58 in the bridge.

Best of luck, HTH

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I have the vintage noiseless pickups in my mim, and it sounds great.

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1986 Kramer Baretta
1989 Samick "The Samick" Les Paul
2007 Fender Strat MIM Deluxe / 1985 MIJ neck
1990 Epiphone Strat
Marshall JCM 2000 DLS 50 watt / Marshall 1960a 4x12

https://soundcloud.com/jim-slimjim-cassi

I have the dimarzios on my MIM strat and they sound great. But I used n=58, m=67, b=61. You can also get a prewired Dimarzio pickguard that has that convo.

I have the Texas Specials in my new MiM and I think it sounds better than my last American Standard.

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Gary

Yes. IMHO, the Texas Specials are among the best single-coil pickups ever.

I'd like to remind people, that there is The Right Sound for everyone. It is not about where your mics are built. It is about what you like. That is always personal.

I have currently 2 strats. First one has U.S built Texas Specials. The other has extremely cheap Wilkinsons. I'd prolly need to sell 50 of those to buy me half a box of cigarettes, but i like the sound over some U.S made (ecspecially end of -70's, young -80s time).

There are so many types of Fender mics available these days (not to mention all other brands). But your guitar is not necessarily worse only because it is made in Mexico. Just different. Without owing a thing to Fender, i still dare to point out, that there are noiseless Fender sets available also.

I also use this opinion to remind earthlings, that different strings make a lot for the sound. Sometimes, ecspecially before expensive buys, one should ask the friend with "better" sounding guitar about his choise in the string department.

Bah. What do i know? Just 33 years from my first gig.

And due feeling rich today, i'll pay the gasoline, when The Flock Of Purists flame me for this opinion

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SRV should really be sold under "drums, hammers and explosives" cathegory

I have a couple of MIMs and though I like the quality and playability, I always thought these single coil pickups where a bit lacking in tone. To my ears, somewhat murky sounding and not very bright. I played some Americans and thought, wow, what a difference...

I just ordered and received some Tex Mex pickups that I will put in one of the MIMs. Haven't installed them just yet, but I'm expecting an improvement for the tones I like. I'll get back once installed...

Before you go humbucking or noiseless, keep in mind that the most popular jazz pickup is the classic P90. This is a single coil Alnico pickup originally made by Gibson. Today Fender, Seymour Duncan, and most other manufacturers make P90 clones. They are hotter than the stock pickups that come in MIM Stratocasters, so it will give you a nice little boost. When you mentioned "smooth jazz" its the first thing that popped in my head. Great jazz pup, but anything but noiseless.

Another + for the DiMarzios. Put them in my MIM Strat and love them. Nice tone...NO noise.

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"I like the way he puts Yngwie J. Malmsteen on his album covers. You know,....so you don't confuse him with all the other Yngwie Malmsteens in the business"


2008 Fender MIM Stratocaster
2010 Epiphone Masterbilt
2009 Fender Super Champ XD

i using the stocked ceramic magnet pickups in my MIM, i love them.
in fact, i prefer ceramic magnet pickups more than alnico magnet pickups.
they are more " rock & roll"
Gibson Explorer & Gibson Flying V uses ceramic pickups.

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http://www.youtube.com/user/eddytanhh